TMR Zoohttp://www.tmrzoo.com
Men's Entertainment... Devolved!Tue, 13 Mar 2018 22:40:22 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.5.13TMRzoohttps://feedburner.google.comSubscribe with My Yahoo!Subscribe with NewsGatorSubscribe with My AOLSubscribe with BloglinesSubscribe with NetvibesSubscribe with GoogleSubscribe with PageflakesSubscribe with PlusmoSubscribe with The Free DictionarySubscribe with Bitty BrowserSubscribe with Live.comSubscribe with Excite MIXSubscribe with WebwagSubscribe with Podcast ReadySubscribe with WikioSubscribe with Daily Rotation2006 PS2 Classic Final Fantasy 12: The Zodiac Age for PChttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/R_EtK2u6rxU/2006-ps2-classic-final-fantasy-12-the-zodiac-age-for-pc
Tue, 13 Mar 2018 22:40:22 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72710Videogame Roundtable Episode 324: January Blues Aside from cardboard products by Nintendo, there wasn’t much to talk about this week, thanks to the January slog. However, the guys did play games and there was some news to talk about. This week’s headlines include: NIS America admits it has no idea when Ys VIII will launch […]

Aside from cardboard products by Nintendo, there wasn’t much to talk about this week, thanks to the January slog. However, the guys did play games and there was some news to talk about.

This week’s headlines include:

NIS America admits it has no idea when Ys VIII will launch on PC
New Fortnite: Battle Royale update available now
Final Fantasy 12: The Zodiac Age releases in just a few weeks on PC

All this and Listener Feedback, too.

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo.com and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including PS4, Microsoft XBOX One and XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72710/2006-ps2-classic-final-fantasy-12-the-zodiac-age-for-pc“The Booty Bible” Author Alicia Marie’s Cosplayhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/3Iwt4iyEyRk/the-booty-bible-author-alicia-maries-cosplay
Tue, 13 Mar 2018 22:25:29 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72698For any who feel attractive women only got into comics (and gaming in recent years to be part of the growing trend, they have yet to meet our current feature; gamer, comic enthusiast, author and fitness model/guru – Alicia Marie. Originally inspired by reading through her cousin’s comics one summer, Alicia Marie decided (at a […]

For any who feel attractive women only got into comics (and gaming in recent years to be part of the growing trend, they have yet to meet our current feature; gamer, comic enthusiast, author and fitness model/guru – Alicia Marie.

Originally inspired by reading through her cousin’s comics one summer, Alicia Marie decided (at a young age) that she wanted to be like the women she saw in those comics.
She even joked in one interview that her original motivation was to look like Mz. Marvel.

From that point Alicia Marie turned to physical fitness and exercise to mold her body towards this goal, although she does admit that it was also (in part) to see how far she could push herself.

Her hard work paid off as she has been featured on MTV and numerous magazines including Self, Muscle and Fitness Hers, Essence and Oxygen (who she writes a regular column for), to name a few.

A successful author, her book ‘The Booty Bible’ not only gained a lot of attention, it further aided putting Alicia Marie on the fitness map.

Not only has she studied broadcast journalism and neuroscience, Alicia Marie is also an avid gamer; even including a section dedicated to gaming on her website.

John Goodale is the author of ‘Johnny Gora’ (available through Amazon.com), and a number of articles here on TMRZoo.com. His monthly column ‘Indy Comics Spotlight’ appears here and through his blog Indy Comics Spotlight

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72698/the-booty-bible-author-alicia-maries-cosplayDC Villains Game Reportedly in the Workshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/7lK1jwUK_38/dc-villains-game-reportedly-in-the-works
Tue, 13 Mar 2018 22:08:09 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72695Videogame Roundtable Episode 323: Switch Emulation This week’s episode was recorded on time, but publication was late thanks to power outages again. There’s no discussion of Nintendo’s $70 cardboard arts and crafts project (that’ll be the subject of the next episode), but a Switch emulator does get some discussion. The news this week: Battlefield 1 […]

This week’s episode was recorded on time, but publication was late thanks to power outages again. There’s no discussion of Nintendo’s $70 cardboard arts and crafts project (that’ll be the subject of the next episode), but a Switch emulator does get some discussion.

The news this week:

Battlefield 1 is setting one of its maps free this week
LEGO Incredibles 2 and DC Villains games reportedly in the works
BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle has nabbed a Western release date
Stardew Valley creator teases multiplayer

This week’s Question of the Week is again “What popular game did you play long after its initial release?”

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo.com and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including PS4, Microsoft XBOX One and XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72695/dc-villains-game-reportedly-in-the-worksGuitar Gear Review: Carvin DCM200L Power Amphttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/GLUoNPXErKU/guitar-gear-review-carvin-dcm200l-power-amp
Tue, 13 Mar 2018 22:03:37 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72692The Carvin DCM200L power amp is a super versatile power amp. I’m really liking it a lot. With the existing power amp being almost 30 years old and with the addition of the Fractal Axe-Fx II XL+ and all the new cabs and speakers… it just seems like time for a new power amp. Carvin […]

The Carvin DCM200L power amp is a super versatile power amp. I’m really liking it a lot. With the existing power amp being almost 30 years old and with the addition of the Fractal Axe-Fx II XL+ and all the new cabs and speakers… it just seems like time for a new power amp.

Carvin is a brand that I do hear from artists and people in the guitar gear biz as having a solid line of products. I mean, Steve Vai has been using Carvin for decades, amirite? Being the lucky guy that I am, I’ve had the opportunity to be around a Carvin X100B head and some of the Carvin 4 x 12 closed back birch cabs. Great stuff and I hope to be able to add more to the Imperial Meditation Chamber.

The adaptability of the DCM200L is one of the biggest draws. When checking out new speakers, I do like to run things through a range of impedance and wattage settings. It might all even out in the wash, but there are nuances and I enjoy being thorough. The load selection options on the back of the unit opens up the range of what can be done. From 100W/100W stereo at both 4Ω and 8Ω, to 200W mono at both 8Ω and 16Ω, to all points in between.

Stereo is all sorts of rockin’ fun, but there’s a nifty parallel switch for when in mono operation. This allows the unused input to become an output and daisy chain to equipment. Oh, the fun ideas I’m having for that feature as I continue to revamp ye olde rig.

Speaking of buttons to push, the front panel rises to the occasion. The EQ Expand option drops a touch of the mids when activated. Cool possibilities include a quick change when double tracking or allowing for a simple resolution to a different cab.

The DCM200L is a real no-brainer to connect. I’m going 1/4″ right now, but there’s that geek factor or going XLR on the inputs. No real need. I just want to geek out. LOL! From there, finding workable levels are a snap. A bit of an aside, but I’m also digging the recessed knobs on the front and the wide range of markings along the span of the travel of each knob.

The quality of the signal is pretty much true to what I expect to hear out of my preamps. Pretty much? Well, it’s not like all brands and type of power amps are the exact same. What would be the point? When it comes to the DCM200L, I’m finding it to be a cleaner amp. In as much as it reveals that my old power amp was adding the every so slightest bit of a smidge of gain. Sure, that was part of my sound all that time and I just didn’t know any better. However, knowing there’s a higher fidelity with the DCM200L, there is the amenity of trusting what you’re hearing. Why drop a huge wad on a amp/processor if you can’t trust your power amp.

I’m digging that the DCM200L runs quietly and is only a single rack space. And at 200W, there’s plenty of power to hang in any gig that lacks sound support. It has plenty of features without being overly complicated, which is a pretty good things for those of us that play guitar. haha!

Darth Phineas is a long time music industry insider who provides his readers with unbiased reviews on musical instrument and guitar gear. You can read more of his reviews and check out industry news on his Facebook community Darth Phineas, Twitter or his website is darthphineas.com

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72692/guitar-gear-review-carvin-dcm200l-power-ampSwitch Outsells Entire Lifetime of Wii U in Japanhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/NK6igVycU1w/switch-outsells-entire-lifetime-of-wii-u-in-japan-2
Tue, 13 Mar 2018 21:58:38 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72690Video Game Roundtable Episode 322: Late to the Party This week’s episode is a little late due to a power outage. However, despite the lack of really interesting news, the crew still finds plenty to chat about. This week’s news includes: Switch outsells entire lifetime of Wii U in Japan The Tomb Kings bring crazy […]

This week’s episode is a little late due to a power outage. However, despite the lack of really interesting news, the crew still finds plenty to chat about.

This week’s news includes:

Switch outsells entire lifetime of Wii U in Japan
The Tomb Kings bring crazy new units and crafting to Total War: Warhammer 2
State of Decay 2 is still on for a spring release
Rebellion buys studio Radiant Worlds

The Question of the Week is, “What popular game did you play long after its initial release?”

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo.com and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including PS4, Microsoft XBOX One and XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72690/switch-outsells-entire-lifetime-of-wii-u-in-japan-2Ian Hunter and the Rant Band Live at the City Winery, Boston 2-11-18http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/5MDqJ2Tr0K0/ian-hunter-and-the-rant-band-live-at-the-city-winery-boston-2-11-18
Thu, 15 Feb 2018 13:29:48 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72666Sunday night at the City Winery Boston, a new venue that opened December 2017, Ian Hunter’s Rant band wrapped up the two night stand in this classy environment. Comfortable, low-key blue light rains softly over the dinner tables creating what has to be one of the great atmospheres for entertainment in this six-state region. The […]

Sunday night at the City Winery Boston, a new venue that opened December 2017, Ian Hunter’s Rant band wrapped up the two night stand in this classy environment. Comfortable, low-key blue light rains softly over the dinner tables creating what has to be one of the great atmospheres for entertainment in this six-state region.

The charging sounds opened the show at 7:08 pm with the band mostly dressed in black (the exception being a stray red shirt on one of the guitarists) and Ian Hunter rocking’ like a man in his twenties or thirties, as timeless as Peter Noone, and continuing to spread his gospel to we who have been attending his concerts since the early 1970s.

It’s an interesting thing reviewing a concert in the 2018 age of YouTube where video clips from previous concerts proliferate. At an Ian Anderson solo-from-Tull concert a few years back, Ian had mentioned in the interview prior to the show that he didn’t like the audience taping him…the first notes of Aqualung had a sea of cellphones in the air rather than the cigarettes we witnessed in the 70s and 80s, and this critic’s thinking “Anderson’s worst nightmare!”

Without getting a “refresher course” from these clandestine videos on the web, one has to rely on the memory of a fun night of rock and roll, and his (or her) notes…the experience as a whole rather than the single song or two. However, I shall try to reconstruct my recollection of Sunday at the City Winery Boston, so here we go!

On this night Ian Hunter performed mostly his solo material from the multitude of solo discs. Interesting that for me the music from the newest, Fingers Crossed, stood out, especially the title track, Ghosts and the sublime “Dandy,” Backstage I noted to Ian that “Dandy” is a perfect tribute song, tucking in pieces of David Bowie song titles and life events without becoming tacky or maudlin. Indeed, it feels as if it is a Bowie/Hunter co-write, created in the style of La David, the intro guitar lick almost an inverted and truncated inspiration from the Mick Ralphs / Mick Ronson magic of the All the Young Dudes opening sequence. A constant reconfiguration on such masterpieces as “Honoloochie Boogie” and “Roll Away the Stone” were welcome treats on the albums Mott and The Hoople, respectively.

The opening guitar riff on “When I’m President,” though, is totally unique and this particular tune is fast becoming my favorite all-time Hunter composition (along with “Dandy” now,) music that is masterful, memorable, entertaining and extraordinary in a world where radio has gone haywire; radio which is supposed to spread the gospel instead is carefully constructed with 200 songs that zombies, not listeners, expect to hear when they get into their car to go to or come home from work. Freeeeebird and Sweet Home Night Moves be damned, would you rather hear boring old Eagles for the nine millionth time or Ian singing “Welcome to the Pit and the Pendulum…I’m gonna lean on the 1 percent when I’m President…”

Live the tunes reflected their respective recordings (When I’m President CD title track, August 2012; “Dandy” from Fingers Crossed, September 2016) and that’s thanks to Hunter’s creativity and wise choices in musicianship. It’s amazing that these legendary performers backing up Ian Hunter are not often mentioned in reviews… “One Take Steve” Holley has toured with Hunter on and off since 1987, having met the Mott the Hoople frontman in 1978. Dennis DiBrizzi has appeared playing keyboards on Genya Ravan recordings, bassist Paul Page performs with Holly in their project, the Sidney Green Street Band, while James Mastro and Mark Bosch team up with Ian for a three-prong guitar attack when Hunter isn’t doubling on keyboards with DiBrizzi.

It’s notable because as The Wrecking Crew and the Section are achieving the fame they deserve years later, Janis Joplin’s Full Tilt Boogie Band and the Lou Reed/Alice Cooper Rock n Roll Animal Band (with Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner) getting their props as well, the Rant Band has yet to be noted for their reliability and enormous skills. Perhaps an Ian Hunter documentary in the future can bring the entire project full circle to the world consciousness which needs to know!
_____________________________________

The Rant Band 2018 is in great form, and so is Hunter, notes from the concert scribbled on a small piece of paper the establishment offered me, along with both sides of two lengthy menus the amiable waiter handed me. (In fact, the help at City Winery Boston are all beneficial and polite to everyone, which is the way it should be. ) Trying to decipher the rock journalist’s own handwriting like interpreting/transcribing hieroglyphics …oh, what the heck, I’m not going to sit here and go bonkers attempting to inadvertently mix metaphors by finding Just Another Night or Man Overboard suddenly merged in the Star Trek transporter beam with Rosemary-Pecorino Truffle Fries at seven bucks a pop or the lovely Pavlova which is City Winery’s meringue with compressed apples and vanilla sox mix (also 7 bucks, thank you very much.)

Ian Hunter is one of the last great rock stars, and he gave those in attendance nearly two hours (one hour, fifty minutes) of non-stop performance which is most difficult past forty years of age…for lesser men, that is.

“Sweet Jane,” from the All The Young Dudes album, is wonderfully back in the set as a bookend sort of tribute to composer Lou Reed in the same fashion as “Dandy” is the nod to Bowie. Lou, Iggy, and the Stooges, Mott the Hoople – the bands we adored from the 60s and 70s (Mott and Iggy emerging circa 1969, the Velvet Underground a few years before that) – were loved by their cult of listeners; Bowie in the 1970s changed all that and brought the music to the forefront that was as much the genius of Bowie/Mick Ronson as it was David’s skills as a songwriter.
________________________________________________

Ghosts” from Fingers Crossed was riveting…especially in the light of the loss of Reed, Bowie, Mott bassist Overand Watts, Mott drummer Buffin, Mick Ronson, our heroes from the days of what they called “Glam” rock but which was actually the second coming of Psychedelia, at least in my mind.

“All the Way to Memphis” and “All the Young Dudes” proving essential as part of the encore/closing act. Yes, you can watch ’em all on YouTube now or download the live albums from Amazon, but the Rant Band live and in concert at the City Winery in Chicago, New York, and Boston is an exquisite experience, a beautiful new venue, a reliable band of rockers that know how to entertain.*

*Not since the days of the Jazz Workshop and Paul’s Mall has the region had a nightspot like this. City Winery Boston is even better than those two iconic old rooms!

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72666/ian-hunter-and-the-rant-band-live-at-the-city-winery-boston-2-11-18UP IN SMOKE – 40th Anniversary Edition Lights Up April 10, 2018 on Blu-rayhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/6PgqIa6FszY/up-in-smoke-40th-anniversary-edition-lights-up-april-10-2018-on-blu-ray
Wed, 14 Feb 2018 19:44:56 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72661Fire up the home entertainment system and call your buds because the ultimate stoner comedy is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The high-larious cannabis cultural epic breakthrough UP IN SMOKE will “… grab you by the poo poo” all over again when it arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD April 10, 2018 from Paramount Home […]

Fire up the home entertainment system and call your buds because the ultimate stoner comedy is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The high-larious cannabis cultural epic breakthrough UP IN SMOKE will “… grab you by the poo poo” all over again when it arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD April 10, 2018 from Paramount Home Media Distribution. A special Deluxe Collector’s Edition, pairing the Blu-ray with the original soundtrack on CD and VINYL LP in deluxe packaging, will arrive the following week on 4/20 from Rhino, featuring a newly recorded “2018 version” of the title song “Up In Smoke.”

In 1978, Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong made their feature film debut in UP IN SMOKE, the outrageously funny classic inspired by their now legendary comedy routines of the early ‘70s. Following massive success with over 10 million comedy albums sold, four Grammy nominations and a win for Best Comedy Recording for “Los Cochinos,” Cheech and Chong took Hollywood by storm when UP IN SMOKE became a smash hit, establishing the pair as the reigning comedy duo of a new generation. Today, the film still has viewers rolling in the aisles and maintains surprising cultural relevance four decades after its original release.

“The greatest thrill is making your first movie and this one has been seen and been influential all over the world for over forty years,” said Richard “Cheech” Marin. “Up in Smoke started stoner movies and is still going strong so smoke it up one more time.”

“Where did the time go? 40 years ago we made low budget movies that grossed over 100 million and are still being watched all over the world! And it also helped legalize an important medicine,” said Thomas Chong. “I am so proud that a movie bearing a title of a simple song I wrote would be so influential for so many years.”

In UP IN SMOKE Cheech and Chong play wannabe musicians and stoners who unwittingly smuggle a van made of marijuana from Mexico to L.A. Their drug-laced humor keeps their spirits high as they unknowingly elude the police and meander their way to an outrageous finale at the Roxy Theatre in Hollywood where Cheech performs in a pink tutu and Chong plays drums in a red body suit with a Quaalude logo.

The UP IN SMOKE Blu-ray Combo Pack features a brand new short-form documentary entitled “How Pedro Met the Man: Up In Smoke at 40,” which chronicles the duo’s comedy history, as well as the origins and impact of the film itself. Capturing a complex and fascinating pop culture odyssey, the documentary incorporates new interviews with Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong and producer/director Lou Adler along with archival footage. The Combo Pack is also loaded with previously released bonus material including deleted scenes, commentary, a music video and more.

The UP IN SMOKE Deluxe Collector’s Edition is presented in a 12×12 package, limited to 5,000 copies. The set pairs the Blu-ray with the original soundtrack on CD and VINYL LP, as well as a 7-inch picture disc, oversized “Up In Smoke” rolling papers, a film poster, and booklet with new essays by both Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, along with rare and unseen photos. In addition to the new version of “Up In Smoke,” the CD also features another previously unreleased version of the song from 1978 with an additional Spanish verse by Cheech.

UP IN SMOKE 40th Anniversary Blu-ray Combo Pack

The UP IN SMOKE Blu-ray is presented in 1080p high definition with English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French Mono Dolby Digital, Spanish Mono Dolby Digital, Portuguese Mono Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. The DVD in the Combo Pack is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 televisions with English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French Mono Dolby Digital, Spanish Mono Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, French, and Spanish subtitles. The Combo Pack includes access to a Digital copy of the film as well as the following:

The UP IN SMOKE Deluxe Collector’s Edition comes housed in a 12×12 six-panel gatefold package and is limited to 5,000 copies. The set features the Blu-ray detailed above as well as the following:

CD

Original soundtrack album featuring classic Cheech & Chong songs like “Up In Smoke” and “Earache My Eye,” other music from the film, and audio clips from the film

Previously unreleased version of the song “Up In Smoke” with an additional Spanish verse by Cheech

“2018 version” of “Up In Smoke”

VINYL LP

Original soundtrack album on vinyl. Back in print for the first time since its initial release in 1978

Picture Disc

7-inch picture disc of “Earache My Eye” b/w “Lost Due To Incompetence (Theme From A Big Green Van)” with an image of Cheech from the film on the A-side and the classic “YESCA” license plate image on the B-side

Extras

Oversized “Up In Smoke” usable rolling papers

11×17 film poster with original, tagline “Don’t Go Straight To See This Movie”

Booklet with new essays by both Cheech Marin & Tommy Chong along with rare and unseen photos

UP IN SMOKE 40th Anniversary DVD

The UP IN SMOKE single-disc DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 televisions with English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French Mono Dolby Digital, Spanish Mono Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, French, and Spanish subtitles. The DVD includes the following:

Feature film in standard definition

Commentary by Cheech Marin and director Lou Adler

How Pedro Met the Man: Up In Smoke at 40—NEW!

Roach Clips with Optional Commentary (deleted scenes)

Lighting It Up: A Look Back at Up In Smoke

“Earache My Eye” featuring Alice Bowie: Animated Music Video

Cheech & Chong’s “The Man Song”

Vintage Radio Spots

Theatrical Trailer

About Paramount Home Media Distribution

Paramount Home Media Distribution (PHMD) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), home to premier media brands that create television programs, motion pictures, consumer products, and digital content for audiences in 180 countries and territories. The PHMD division oversees PPC’s home entertainment and transactional digital distribution activities worldwide. The division is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment content on behalf of Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and CBS and applicable licensing and servicing of certain DreamWorks Animation titles. PHMD additionally manages global licensing of studio content and transactional distribution across worldwide digital distribution platforms including online, mobile and portable devices and emerging technologies.

About Rhino Entertainment

Rhino Entertainment is the catalogue development and marketing division of Warner Music Group. Founded in 1978, Rhino continues to set the standard for excellence in the reissue business it pioneered in both the physical and digital worlds with an emphasis on flawless sound quality, bonus tracks, informative liner notes, award-winning creative packaging, and a strong social conscience. Rhino has also expanded the definition of what a catalogue music company is, as evidenced by the label’s name and likeness representation deal with Frank Sinatra, its multi-faceted relationship with the Grateful Dead, and releasing new albums by heritage artists such as Jeff Beck and Cyndi Lauper. The catalogue of more than 5,000 releases includes material by Led Zeppelin, Eagles, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, The Doors, Chicago, Ray Charles, Black Sabbath, John Coltrane, Yes, Phil Collins, The Ramones, and The Monkees, among many others.

Losing brewery (ahem, Victory and Yuengling, ahem) has to wear the opposing team’s jerseys/colors at the brewery… AND wear the opposing team’s signature mask (e.g. those Philly brewers will be replacing their dog masks with goats!). Don’t worry, we’ll follow up with photo.

Throughout the week, Jacks Abby and Samuel Adams will be taking donations at their taprooms to help preserve the bald eagle (don’t want to clip their wings spirits as they hope to fly high into the 2019 season) while Victory and Yuengling will take donations to preserve the Freedom Trail (it will be a long walk home if the hometown team loses… which they won’t)

What does Jim Koch, founder & brewer of Samuel Adams, think?

“Like last year, we’re behind New England all the way as they head to the big game. To put our beer where our mouth is, we’re wagering a brewer’s bet with our lager-loving friends at The Abby against underdogs, Victory Brewing and Yuengling. We know this one’s not going to be easy. Watching a thrilling game with a great craft beer in hand never gets old and we hope to watch Goodell hand over another trophy our favorite New England team.”

What does Jack’s Abby think?

“At Jack’s Abby, we think New England football is like New England beer – world class. Brewers are no strangers to the ‘no days off’ mentality so it makes perfect sense to wager on the game with our friends at Sam Adams, Yuengling, and Victory. New England knows how to get the job done, and we’re happy to bet our beer on it!” – Jack Hendler, Co-Owner and Brewer

What does Yuengling think?

“We’re are excited for our hometown team and this friendly wager with Sam Adams, Victory and The Abby as a fun way for Philly and Boston football fans to show their passion for great beer during the big game.” – Jennifer Yuengling, VP of Operations of D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc. Yuengling is America’s Oldest Brewery, family owned and operated in Pottsville, PA since 1829.

What does Victory think?

“I feel like we picked the best team of beer buds on the field and now we raise our glasses in friendly competition. Cheers to our fans, the everyday winners who thirst for craft beer Victory!”– Bill Covaleski, Co-Founder of Victory Brewing Co.

“The birds have been underdogs for quite some time and there’s nothing we’d like more than to see them taste victory! Especially now that there’s a friendly wager in place! The passion that all of us brewers put behind brewing quality craft beer is only amplified when it meets a day as passionate as Sunday will be. Like the majority of Philly born and bred Eagles’ fans, we’re proud of our homegrown roots. So much so that we named our newest beer Home Grown. And you can guarantee we’ll be raising our glasses of Home Grown to these local legends this Sunday. On the road to Victory!” – Ron Barchet, Co-Founder of Victory Brewing Co.

For Boston-area fans: If the New England wins the Championship, fans over 21+ can stop by our Samuel Adams Boston Brewery Tap Room on Monday (Feb. 5th) wearing New England gear and celebrate the win with a beverage on us. GO TEAM!

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72648/big-game-bet-sam-adams-and-jacks-abby-wager-bet-with-pa-craft-brewersReview: The Complaints – Talk to Mehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/P1V8BcWwj5g/review-the-complaints-talk-to-me
Wed, 31 Jan 2018 10:53:21 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72644After the Complaints released the driving CD singles, “Trade Up,” and the Chris Lord-Alge produced “South Side Suicide,” they bring the angst down a few notches for this release, Talk to Me, an exquisitely packaged and beautifully crafted collection of eight compositions along with a reworking of the first track, “The View.” And it is […]

After the Complaints released the driving CD singles, “Trade Up,” and the Chris Lord-Alge produced “South Side Suicide,” they bring the angst down a few notches for this release, Talk to Me, an exquisitely packaged and beautifully crafted collection of eight compositions along with a reworking of the first track, “The View.” And it is a perfect way to open and close the disc, both renditions subtle and commanding, it’s the kind of melody and lyric that Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, and the Eagles would certainly wish they came up with. Dean Petrella – vocalist, guitarist, keyboard player, wrote the majority of the words (except “Mountains” which the liners note was written and performed by The Complaints and Adam Go.) “The View” opens and closes the disc though it metamorphoses into two different perspectives a la George Harrison’s “Isn’t it a Pity” on All Things Must Pass, a light poppy venture to begin the journey, a darker quasi-dance mix to bring this very strong album to its conclusion. Play both “View” renditions back to back and it is most revealing.

Co-produced by the band and legendary engineer Phil Greene (Buddy Guy, John Cafferty/Beaver Brown, New Kids on the Block – as well as guitarist with the vastly underrated Swallow on Warner Brothers) the album is balanced and compelling. “Hanging Out” is one of four songs (of the 9 tracks) that hit the 3:52 mark, time-wise, most of the material clocking in around 2:40 – 3:20, short and sweet and making the point. It’s an easy going dissertation, at least by pop standards, with the next track, “Atlas (Carry You)” a minute shorter. Both tracks – “Hanging Out” and “Atlas” Triple-A rock with authority. And has it been 17-18 years since the Complaints released the Fear disc, with Criminal Mind in 2002? This veteran group just grows stronger through the years like fine wine and this recording has real staying power throughout.

“Wouldn’t Change A Thing,” track five, has all the markings of a radio-friendly composition with the potential to be memorable. “Talk To Me,” which precedes it, also has that captivating mood. Phil Greene and the Complaints smartly combine their talents to create something very special. Each tune has its own identity, and the sequencing is perfect as the listener is taken on a journey. From “Breathe,” not the Pink Floyd song, to “Home,” drop the needle/sequence button anywhere and there’s something entertaining and thought-provoking within.

Chris Cruz on bass and vocals, Anthony Marotti on drums/vocals and Dean Petrella are The Complaints. Add “Trade Up” and “Southside Suicide” to this disc as bonus tracks and you have an amazing set of recordings.

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72644/review-the-complaints-talk-to-meSpread Eagle Sign To Frontiers Music – New Albumhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/Etp_Y2KNx1M/spread-eagle-sign-to-frontiers-music-new-album
Wed, 17 Jan 2018 17:57:09 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72633Frontiers Music and Spread Eagle are very proud to announce the planned release of a new studio album in 2019. The band has started pre-production in the Music Building, New York, NY which is the exact place where their debut album was written and rehearsed. Recording will take place at Studio E in Brooklyn, NY […]

Frontiers Music and Spread Eagle are very proud to announce the planned release of a new studio album in 2019. The band has started pre-production in the Music Building, New York, NY which is the exact place where their debut album was written and rehearsed. Recording will take place at Studio E in Brooklyn, NY with Grammy Award winning engineer Tom Camuso.

What a fantastic, fun year this has been for Spread Eagle! In August-September they toured UK/EU for the very first time. A HUGE thanks to promoters Ian Glenn Wright at Hull Metal Heaven Festival, Bernd Wilbert at MBM Live, Seven Webster at Hard Rock Hell Festival, Sebastian Alsdorf at Paunchy Cats and their incredible friend Dan DeVita at TKO Artists.

The shows were great, the audiences were amazing and the band had a truly incredible experience. Spread plan on more UK/EU touring (along with USA and other territories) as soon as the new record is completed.

They’re inspired and working hard on doing what we do best. Writing kick ass ROCK music that will be played loud and live… to many people. This is what they live for, so stay tuned!

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72633/spread-eagle-sign-to-frontiers-music-new-albumFreestones / Max Clark Live at Club Bohemiahttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/v2UW7vwTTag/freestones-max-clark-live-at-club-bohemia
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:51:49 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72623The Freestones are a real find, a sound not often present in the Boston area community that got a good taste of this New Hampshire group’s fun and musicall style For those who have heard the amazing recordings of Alan O’Day’s “Easy Evil,” be it by Genya Ravan, Sarah Vaughan, Sylvia, Lulu – this ensemble […]

The Freestones are a real find, a sound not often present in the Boston area community that got a good taste of this New Hampshire group’s fun and musicall style For those who have heard the amazing recordings of Alan O’Day’s “Easy Evil,” be it by Genya Ravan, Sarah Vaughan, Sylvia, Lulu – this ensemble present that kind of Rusty Kershaw cajun magic (see Rusty’s Domino album release produced by Rob Fraboni) …and in concert, it’s an electric hootenanny – an electric jugband that keeps its rock sensibilities front and center.

The vocals of Mackenzie Hamilton are as essential as the guitar, bass and drums, and when she wants to wail, as on “Going Down,” she dominates the proceedings in a very good way. Not Janis Joplin taking over the show, but complementing the boys as they churn out this delightful and somewhat aggressive sound…the slide guitar and rhythm section all in unison and brilliantly powerful.

John Webb’s guitar and vocals lead the group in a Jerry Garcia sort of way, not pushy but guiding the elements as they combine to generate a dance groove inside a genre that isn’t recognized as a style that invites dance. That’s because they are as much a rock and roll group as they are stylists. “I Need Never Get Old” changes the form but stays within a framework, Matt Smith’s bass and Sean Knight’s drums at times a single unit, at others dimensional parts of the whole.

Is that “Tumblin’ Dice” by the Rolling Stones? Yes, morphed and melted into the netherworld Jarred Garneau builds. Just lots of fun on a Stones’ classic starting in the Freestone way, a little dash of Linda Ronstadt’s hit version, the Rolling Stones composition coming full circle as the song concludes. The encore was a most respectful, but again transitioned, approach to former Malden, Massachusetts resident Norman Greenbaum’s eternal “Spirit in the Sky.” As with “Tumblin’ Dice” your brain starts in with “is this…could it be?…” and – yes, a reinvention of a perfect song for this creative crew from Rollinsville, New Hampshire.

Opening act Max Clark – son of Jerry’s Kids / Unnatural Axe drummer Jack Clark – was equally a delight with his Dylan-esque angst, using the guitar as a percussive instrument to drive the statement home without a net – or a loud, active band behind him.

11-9-17

Drop the Knife
Going Down
I Need Never Get Old
That Ain’t You
I Want to Break Free
Sugar
Can’t Explain
Tumbling Dice
Newfound Love
Spirit in the Sky

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72623/freestones-max-clark-live-at-club-bohemiaComic Review: Morgan’s Organshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/HaMMM1kZlmA/comic-review-morgans-organs
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:43:35 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72620We often think of ourselves as being governed by our emotions, but what if our actions were governed by our internal organs? That could certainly yield some comical results as our brain and sex organs battled with one and other, especially in our teens or early twenties; high school and college would certainly be a […]

We often think of ourselves as being governed by our emotions, but what if our actions were governed by our internal organs? That could certainly yield some comical results as our brain and sex organs battled with one and other, especially in our teens or early twenties; high school and college would certainly be a lot more interesting.

Imagine what your life would be like if your brain and love bits were fighting for control of you. If that sounds like the basis for some great comedy, then you will want to take the time to read Morgan’s Organs. This type of inner battle is exactly what happens in the title Morgan’s Organs created by writer Daniel Brodie, and drawn by artist Robert Jennex.

Morgan’s Organs is sharp and clean looking comic that skirts the edge without going over the line. While it would have been easy to go with full-on vulgarity (and graphic imagery), Brodie and Jennex instead chose to skim exact details in(both) the text and the images. This decision created comedy gold. Although it stands to say that this still remains a mature title.

Rather than creating the standard sort of humour we see populating the internet, the pair have instead created a quick flowing, clever comedy. The writing focuses on dialogue rather than a heavy narrative (or combination of the two). This choice moves the story along at a quick, even pace, as Brodie works in all the organs (and body parts) to have their say. Brodie’s approach, in how he writes the comic, works well with Jennex’s art style.

Unlike many comics that use heavy line work, Jennex’s approach brings everything to life and gives it personality, which supports Brodie’s dialogue focused writing.
Jennex uses a clean, cartoony style that is full of personality and into which he works a slew of Easter Eggs for the reader. The two men’s work meshes so well it gives the comic such a natural feel that its difficult to imagine a different approach.

The Easter Eggs I mentioned are a series of characters and references from popular shows, comics and video games that Jennex (quietly) works into the overall imagery.
I’m not going to give any hints so readers can have the added fun of finding them for themselves as they enjoy this series.

As always, the real question is – Is this comic worth your entertainment dollar?

The answer is, simply – yes.

Morgan’s Organs is fast, funny and light-hearted comic that finds a great balance throughout. This is a comic that is not only fun to read but to also reread, which says a lot for a comic. Not only has Brodie and Jennex taken the time to create a great title, they have also invested in producing a quality hard copy with the support they have received.

The vibrant pages are printed on a strong stock and rather than the standard 22-24 page format, Brodie and Jennex offer a 40 page book. Which they offer for $6 Cdn, a fairly standard price for an indy title.

You can follow them on Facebook, their Official Page (from which you can order issues as well) or support them on Kickstarter.

John Goodale is the author of ‘Johnny Gora’ (available through Amazon.com), and a number of articles here on TMRZoo.com. His monthly column ‘Indy Comics Spotlight’ appears here and through his blog Indy Comics Spotlight

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72620/comic-review-morgans-organsReview: Universe No. 122 Beyond Marshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/XCExcpSpgK4/review-universe-no-122-beyond-mars
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:38:24 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72617“I’ll take out a search party, way beyond Mars…” is a theme along with its poetry in the four minute and forty-two opening track, Universal Dreams, where the protagonist concludes “I won’t be coming back to earth.” Paul LaPointe’s ambitious and creative project, Universe No. 122 – unleashed within the Beyond Mars album – is […]

“I’ll take out a search party, way beyond Mars…” is a theme along with its poetry in the four minute and forty-two opening track, Universal Dreams, where the protagonist concludes “I won’t be coming back to earth.”

Paul LaPointe’s ambitious and creative project, Universe No. 122 – unleashed within the Beyond Mars album – is pure minamilist quasi-psychedelia engaging in stripped down pop constructs. Drone-rock about planets wrapped up in sci-fi cloaks a la Kenny Young’s long-lost Last Stage for Silverworld (Warner Bros. 1973) – and far more interesting than the eponymous Zager and Evans (1969, RCA) album follow-up to their cringe-worthy sci-fi pseudo classic (In the year) “2525” march on. Five minutes and thirty seconds comprise “Gravity” while “No Direction” is half the time and it is the imagery and ideas which are the complexities here over simple musical streams developed by the composer who plays all instruments on this outing. Fuzzy guitars on “Gilese 581c” and suspensions in between the assault beg for video representation, as do all these titles. Were each song placed within some visual imagery, a series of vignettes, the album could take on a double life separate from the audio.

“This was My Choice” has LaPointe sounding like Nico on extra downers (where he appears to be singing “I need you when you walk through the door…so very Nico!) like when she was at the Paradise theater solo with her harmonium, stopping the concert so that a tray of pills and water could be brought to her, the audience applauding as she consumed the substances…LaPointe’s piano and drawl reflect what Nico’s cult was seeking when she played sans band. The album concludes with “I am the Actor, I am the Astronaut” where the singer expresses : “My beating heart is a dying star, it will explode into a black hole With no regard for who you are I’ll pull you in if you get too close Ripped apart like a B-rate star, this void’s too big to be closed ”

Sci-Fi rock is an underutilized genre and Universe No.122 pick up the path once pioneered by Pink Floyd’s Syd Barrett with his 1970 outings The Madcap Laughs and Barrett – both released in the U.S. as a double disc in 1974 simply entitled Syd Barrett

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syd_Barrett_(album)

Check out the music of Universe No. 122 here:

https://universeno122.bandcamp.com/

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

With menacing opening guitar throbs on “The Creeper” (not the famous punk song by Boston’s Unnatural Axe, another creeper!) Thee Fightin’ Fish enter the ring with gloves off. If you like early New York Dolls barreling all-out assault which begins with lyrical admonitions while adding smart, tight musical attitudes at the start, middle and finish of each blitzing tune, this well-recorded quartet of selections will fit the bill. Track 4, “You’ll Get Yours” is probably my favorite with liberal use of the “f” word and George Kondylis drumbeats rocking along with Bob Roos’ incessant guitar. Andy Excuse is on vocals, Matt Robinson on bass and on “Lost My Job” and “Don’t Make Me Suffer” they provide a unified front. Great stuff that you can sample on Reverb Nation dot com / Theefightinfish with no g after “fightin.” https://www.reverbnation.com/theefightinfish

The Creeper
Lost My Job
Don’t Make Me Suffer
You’ll Get Yours

* Andy Excuse – Vocals

* Matt Robinson – Bass

* George Kondylis – Drums

* Bob Roos – Guitar

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72614/review-thee-fightin-fish-4-song-e-pDVD Review: Alice Cooper Welcome to My Nightmare 1975http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/xdsJCU1l3Ck/dvd-review-alice-cooper-welcome-to-my-nightmare-1975
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:26:04 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72611Alice Cooper, when he re-emerged from the ashes of the Alice Cooper Group, backed by Lou Reed’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal band, was a major event. How do you top the edgy excitement of the original Cooper five which probably felt as abandoned as Big Brother and the Holding Company once Janis Joplin left for […]

Alice Cooper, when he re-emerged from the ashes of the Alice Cooper Group, backed by Lou Reed’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal band, was a major event. How do you top the edgy excitement of the original Cooper five which probably felt as abandoned as Big Brother and the Holding Company once Janis Joplin left for the Kozmic Blues tour? The Cooper clan, like Big Brother, was a special unit, but Hunter/Wagner were their own touring equivalent of the famed Wrecking Crew, perhaps only equaled by Janis Joplin’s Pearl set of musicians, the Full Tilt Boogie Band. These were the musical equivalent of cosmic storms that come by once in a lifetime. Cooper had the right combination in mind for this tour, as exhibited on this DVD, it was simply that his change in direction for his fan base that was more of a jolt than Joplin fronting a kinda sorta clone of Blood, Sweat and Tears.

The Welcome to My Nightmare musicians – Steve Hunter and Dick Wagner – were a larger-than-life presence, and as potent as Keith Richards / Mick Taylor, making for the two best rock and roll guitar duos on the planet. And though the Kozmic Blues was to this critic’s ears an amazing transformation for Janis (yes, I’m a huge Big Brother fan too, for different musical reasons,) it was the songwriting on Welcome To My Nightmare that took itself too seriously and veered off from the specialized rock that was generated on the Love it to Death and Killer albums by Cooper, as easy a comparison to make as Jethro Tull’s Aqualung vs Ian Anderson’s concept, The Passion Play. Do you want to hear Passion Play or Aqualung? It’s as rhetorical a question as asking if you want to spin Love it to Death and/or Killer over Nightmare.

Alice Cooper gets an A for effort with both the cinema release of the Wembley Stadium shows and the television movie, but where Lou Reed revisited the Velvet Underground, the tried and true “new” band (as in Lou’s band -Hunter, Wagner, Colcord, Glan and Prakash John replacing Peter Walsh) bringing the Killer album to life on the big screen would have been a sure-fire hit…and far more welcome for this writer/reviewer and millions of fans as well.

As a concept Welcome/Nightmare’s script was the actual misfire in 1975 and this supporter/advocate/disciple of both Cooper and Reed feels the same (semi disappointed) way today as when I first purchased the album and then saw the show at the Boston Garden April 24, 1975. But having the performances professionally recorded and preserved give that A for effort an A plus for posterity. “Only Women Bleed” shows what a gifted singer Alice is, the ability to play to a rock crowd with growls and screams, and middle of the road radio with a hybrid of Perry Como and Mick Jagger, competing with Kenny Rogers, Helen Reddy and the Bee Gees on the soft rock airwaves.

This TV special airing three years after Alice’s mesmerizing performance on the very first In Concert ABC special in November of 1972, is – as stated – historic, but lacks the excitement of both that amazing first In Concert special where Cooper’s riveting extended “I’m 18” (as the band was said to have originally performed it before it was truncated for Top 40 radio) certainly ushered in the new ABC concert show on Friday nights with more than a proverbial bang. It’s just that the Broadway feel of “Welcome to my Nightmare (the song) was not what the fan base expected; it reflects Alice’s love of films (West Side Story in particular, screen version from the 1950’s play of the same name) as with the original Cooper group invoking Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s “Jet Song” (“Gutter Cat vs The Jets,” on School’s Out) – it was outside of their ”sphere of operations,” if you will, and not what Warner Brothers was promoting to the world. (Nightmare was released on the Atlantic label rather than Warner, a change of labels but still under the WEA umbrella.)

As I review this forty two years later the best tracks on Welcome to My Nightmare live are “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” “I’m 18,” “Billion Dollar Babies,” and “School’s Out” as re-interpreted by the Lou Reed band, a group that did the same for the music of the Velvet Underground with Reed in 1973, two years prior. The fluid guitars of Hunter and Wagner on “Billion Dollar Babies” are as eloquent as they were with Reed in Sheffield at Oval Hall, September 9, 1973. Find the tape on YouTube or Wolfsgang’s Vault, very worth listening to, especially if you want to explore the nuances of this DVD and its musical pedigree. With two years and a week on the road, the band that was magnificent when it first launched with Reed, September 1, 1973, is efficient, but more restrained by the cinematic and television duties.

My favorite all-time concert today is still the very first gig by this “Rock n Roll Animal” group – the September 1, 1973 Lenox Massachusetts (Berkshire county) show where Wagner/Hunter and Reed put on an explosive, experimental night that was a once in a lifetime experience. The sun setting at the Lenox Music Inn (see the Inn’s history here: http://www.musicinn.org/1970s-concert-schedule.html ) and this band that emerged from the Berlin sessions, augmented with Peter “Pops” Walsh of Seatrain on the bass, Steve Hunter on guitar, the late Dick Wagner (RIP July 30, 2014) on guitar, the late Pentti “Whitey” Glan on drums (RIP Nov 7, 2017) and – most likely at this show – the late Ray Colcord (Feb 5 2016) on keyboards. With the passing of Lou Reed October 27, 2013 – (his wake December 13, 2013 at the Apollo Theater) it is important to get the history of this unique and inspiring / influential crew documented properly. Would John Cougar ever have even put together his 1978 Australian hit “I Need a Lover” in the fashion that we know it without “Intro/Sweet Jane” from the 1974 Rock n Roll Animal album? (as recorded in New York on December 21, 1973 – two days after the Boston show – see Cougar-Mellencamp information here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Need_a_Lover )

The ultraviolet lamp on Lou’s face as the twilight descended on the open-air venue, folk and slide guitar renditions of “Pale Blue Eyes” and “I’ll Be Your Mirror” from the Velvet Underground, a folk version of “Heroin” which had the band enter and start building over Lou’s simple guitar strums into an explosive unit, so much more exciting and involved (and complex) that when the band returned to Boston on December 19, 1973 – two nights before the recording of Rock and Roll Animal at Howard Stein’s Academy of Music in New York, it was a sort of a let down. Sure, the concert was great, RR Animal went gold in 1978 (must be platinum now?) – as did Welcome to My Nightmare – which did go platinum as the sales increased. Ultimate Classic Rock notes that the “Nightmare” critics at the onset weren’t as thrilled about the transition …but have warmed up over the years. http://ultimateclassicrock.com/alice-cooper-welcome-to-my-nightmare/ This critic hasn’t…it still is not the first Cooper lp I will pull out of the vault to play for fun…

BUT…with so many great Alice Cooper DVDs out there covering his amazing theatrics, having a true Halloween movie such as Welcome to My Nightmare is essential. Even if the concert footage directed by David Winters comes off somewhat awkwardly like Rollin Binzer’s direction of Ladies and Gentlemen The Rolling Stones (also on Eagle Rock) – which, as with my first thoughts seeing that film in theatrical release, is good but not great.

So too with Welcome to my Nightmare, more important to me as a moment in Cooper time than something to watch repeatedly, but not to be quibbled with too much: it did inspire Michael Jackson to put Vincent Price on his Halloween film, Thriller, did it not?

Joe Viglione is the Chief Film Critic at TMRZoo.com. He has written thousands of reviews and biographies for AllMovie.com, Allmusic.com, Gatehouse Media, Al Aronowitz’s The Blacklisted Journal, and a variety of other media outlets. Joe also produces and hosts Visual Radio, a seventeen year old variety show on cable TV which has interviewed Jodie Foster, director/screenwriter David Koepp, Michael Moore, John Cena, comics/actors Margaret Cho, Gilbert Gottfried, Gallagher, musicians Mark Farner and Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad, Ian Hunter of Mott The Hoople, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Felix Cavaliere of The Rascals, political commentator Bill Press and hundreds of other personalities.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72611/dvd-review-alice-cooper-welcome-to-my-nightmare-1975Guitar Gear Review: Celestion G12T-75 Speakerhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/p5y3zFaYgXI/guitar-gear-review-celestion-g12t-75-speaker
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:14:58 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72606Most people will consider the G12T-75 among the Top 5 speakers offered by Celestion. For hard rock tones, I wager it’s in the Top 3. It also kinda sorta says something that it’s the current stock speaker for the Marshall 1960A and 1960B. I’m digging the G12T-75. Now, there is a bit of commentary out there about […]

Most people will consider the G12T-75 among the Top 5 speakers offered by Celestion. For hard rock tones, I wager it’s in the Top 3. It also kinda sorta says something that it’s the current stock speaker for the Marshall 1960A and 1960B.

I’m digging the G12T-75. Now, there is a bit of commentary out there about how the mids are scooped. Dudes (and dudettes), it sounds fine to me. But first things first…

For this evaluation, the G12T-75 is loaded in a X-pattern in a Peavey 6505 4×12 slant cab. The 6505 comes with 12″ Sheffield 16 ohm speakers which are commonly considered to be an approximation of a Celestion G12M Greenback. This cab got hit with 4 to 8 to 16 ohm settings. I also ran that cab in tandem with a Marshall 1960B cab loaded with 4 Celestion Heritage Series G12-65 at 16 ohm loads per cab.

Is this where you’re wondering why I matched the G12T-75 up with the equivalent of a Greenback? Yeah, lots of players seem to like the G12T-75 paired up with the Vintage 30. And while I hope to try out that combo as well, let’s just go with what we have in front of us for now.

Gotta say, I really like the G12T-75. Lows are punchy and have definition, but not too tight are sterile and you can still manage a touch of “sag” if you want. The highs come across with a balanced delivery that affords the sweet rudeness of blues and the deliberate focus of shred. About those mids. I concede that you will hear it in the comparison below. I think there is also consideration due to the cab you use and the rig you are running. For my preference, I like me some mids. And I do not feel the G12T-75s robs me of mids in any way.

Running through several guitars and many amp settings, the G12T-12 definitely meets expectations. It’s a versatile option that pairs well with other speaker models and performs well at all the settings I configured. And it does mate well with the Greenback style speakers like peas and carrots.

Darth Phineas is a long time music industry insider who provides his readers with unbiased reviews on musical instrument and guitar gear. You can read more of his reviews and check out industry news on his Facebook community Darth Phineas, Twitter or his website is darthphineas.com

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72606/guitar-gear-review-celestion-g12t-75-speakerSwitch Outsells Entire Lifetime of Wii U in Japanhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/xMtATFt8vW4/switch-outsells-entire-lifetime-of-wii-u-in-japan
Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:07:26 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72604Videogame Roundtable Episode 322: Late to the Party This week’s episode is a little late due to a power outage. However, despite the lack of really interesting news, the crew still finds plenty to chat about. This week’s news includes: Switch outsells entire lifetime of Wii U in Japan The Tomb Kings bring crazy new […]

This week’s episode is a little late due to a power outage. However, despite the lack of really interesting news, the crew still finds plenty to chat about.

This week’s news includes:

Switch outsells entire lifetime of Wii U in Japan
The Tomb Kings bring crazy new units and crafting to Total War: Warhammer 2
State of Decay 2 is still on for a spring release
Rebellion buys studio Radiant Worlds

The Question of the Week is, “What popular game did you play long after its initial release?”

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo.com and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including PS4, Microsoft XBOX One and XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72604/switch-outsells-entire-lifetime-of-wii-u-in-japanCraft Beer Review: Sam Adams Brewing’s Sam ’76 is a Treasure for all Beer Drinkershttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/x7EqsNLAiGA/craft-beer-review-sam-adams-brewings-sam-76-is-a-treasure-for-all-beer-drinkers
Fri, 12 Jan 2018 00:40:31 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72597Years ago I had a conversation with Jim Koch that has always stuck with me. Jim told me “When I release a beer I ask myself what will this add to the market that is already not out there.” I notice this dedication as I sample and see new Sam Adams’ releases. Today when sampling Sam […]

Years ago I had a conversation with Jim Koch that has always stuck with me. Jim told me “When I release a beer I ask myself what will this add to the market that is already not out there.” I notice this dedication as I sample and see new Sam Adams’ releases. Today when sampling Sam Adams’ new Sam ’76 that quote hit home.

Sam ’76 is an exciting mash-up of ale and a larger. Any beer drinker knows these two styles of beers have their unique characteristics. Now we know how these characteristic play off of each other in this unique craft beer.

The beer has a hazy body the color of golden straw. A creamy white head appeared but started to fade as I sipped on the beer. The citrus of the hops seems to be the first thing that rises from the glass as you bring your nose to the glass. As you inhale more, you will find touches of pine, grass and grain esters in the aroma.

The mouthfeel of this beer is very light with lively carbonation. The initial tastes have a light wash of citrus while there is a very slight hop wash over your tongue in the finish. I find it interesting the brewers used Cascade, Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops in this craft beer yet it only boasts 12 IBUs. The brewers of Sam Adams showed great restraint in striving for balance in creating this beer.

As you work your way through this beer, the hop flavor builds. However, it never gets bitter. The citrus flavors seem to soar across your palate as you work your way to the bottom of the can.

This beer was the perfect companion for the hot dog I just finished. I could see Sam ’76 becoming a tailgate favorite. My other suggestions would be to pair this beer with seafood or use a bit of it when cooking your steamers. My next experiment with this beer will be to pair it with a lovely Asian dish, preferably Thai.

You should start seeing Sam ’76 on the shelves very soon retailing for $8.99 – $9.99 per six-pack. I would suggest opting for the $15.99, 12-pack seeing at 4.7% ABV this makes for a fantastic session craft beer.

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72597/craft-beer-review-sam-adams-brewings-sam-76-is-a-treasure-for-all-beer-drinkersGuitar Gear Review: Seymour Duncan Silverbird SH-9 Humbuckerhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/C5sQUEr5RF4/guitar-gear-review-seymour-duncan-silverbird-sh-9-humbucker
Wed, 10 Jan 2018 01:16:57 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72594The Silverbird is a rare humbucker that was made almost 35 years ago. It’s more prominently known as the pickup found in the Silverbird guitar made by Zion, as commissioned by Guitar Player magazine in 1983. Reports of how many were made are generally the stuff of legend. It’s been said that less than 100 […]

The Silverbird is a rare humbucker that was made almost 35 years ago. It’s more prominently known as the pickup found in the Silverbird guitar made by Zion, as commissioned by Guitar Player magazine in 1983. Reports of how many were made are generally the stuff of legend. It’s been said that less than 100 were produced, while it’s also been suggested there were only a few dozen.

At first glance, the Silverbird might make people think it’s the old Iommi model that the Duncan company makes that is currently known as the El Diablo. Preceding the Iommi by a solid decade, the Silverbird provides a little of the DNA for what followed. Mostly when it comes to the bobbins and the magnets.

The bobbins are Tele bobbins, which might have someone thinking they are too big. Fret not (ha! a pun!), I had no issue fitting them into a humbucker cavity. It is also generally found with it’s own fitted pickup mounting ring, but a trem-spaced ring should also do the job.

What looks like big thick rails are actually the magnets. The Silverbird has a pair of Alnico 2 magnets, right out there to grab a hold of that energy firsthand.

If you’re looking for a hard-to-find Duncan pickup, it doesn’t get much better than this. Even so, the Silverbird is almost as scarce as any hands-on evaluations. Fear not, gentle readers…

That’s right. Of the guitar gear curiosities that some send me to check out, the Seymour Duncan SH-9 Silverbird humbucker is one.

Generally speaking, the pickups that follow in the same basic design of the Silverbird are known for having a pretty heavy and dark character. So I’m not sure what to expect. Still, not to be too terribly confused for a trained monkey, I install the Silverbird into my main test guitar. It has 4-con lead wire, so I go with the typical (for me) series/split/parallel wiring. And away we go
The lion’s share of the SH-9 models that you can find on the internet seem to be 9BJ. That means Maricela (MJ) Juarez made it/them. It also means there’s a metric ton of mojo going on, because 1) MJ made it, and 2) it was made during what some are starting to consider the Duncan company’s Golden Age of everything always sounding good.

You know, it’s a pretty interesting pickup. A big bold low end that stays firm (is that a JLo reference?) and doesn’t get muddy. The mids are pretty even, with a bit of a grunt in the low mids and a bit of a snarl in the high mids. And the highs are chirpy and airy while retaining a bit of the A2 sweetness.

For dirty amp settings, the Silverbird can go vintage “brown” and it can do prog metal. Slight adjustments to the pickup height reveal a little more of a shift that I see in some humbuckers in this class. I’m still have a little shock over how much articulation there is in the punchy lows, which gives riffing a rhythm work plenty of authority thanks to the natural compression of the pickup.

The Silverbird has a little more push to it than a vintage style option, so clean amp settings might require a of a rolloff on the volume (at the guitar or at the amp). On split and parallel options, it blended really well with a P.A.F. style neck humbucker. By itself in series mode, you’ll easily get a usable crunchy clean.

This bad boy is so few and far between that I really can’t find a usable video. But you know I have specs:

This pickup does show up for sale online from time to time, albeit not often. For what it’s worth, my experience would suggest going for the real deal original SH-9 with the 80s era sticker on the baseplate. In the event you find someone that doesn’t know what they have, the DCR specs clearly give it away.

The one reviewed here is currently for sale by the owner, including the original Zion literature. Shoot me a message on Facebook and I’ll get you in touch. SOLD!!!

Darth Phineas is a long time music industry insider who provides his readers with unbiased reviews on musical instrument and guitar gear. You can read more of his reviews and check out industry news on his Facebook community Darth Phineas, Twitter or his website is darthphineas.com

]]>http://www.tmrzoo.com/2018/72594/guitar-gear-review-seymour-duncan-silverbird-sh-9-humbuckerProject Phoenix Accused of Being a Scamhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TMRzoo/~3/Y2wB5GaVYgY/project-phoenix-accused-of-being-a-scam
Wed, 10 Jan 2018 01:08:53 +0000http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=72591Videogame ROundtable Episode 321: 2018 Has Begun The audio quality is a little bad on this podcast, probably because Scott goes on and on about his fractured butt-hole. However, the episode was recorded on January 1, so there isn’t much news. The gang also challenges Paul to pop in and do an episode sometime. News […]

The audio quality is a little bad on this podcast, probably because Scott goes on and on about his fractured butt-hole. However, the episode was recorded on January 1, so there isn’t much news. The gang also challenges Paul to pop in and do an episode sometime.

News that was discussed includes:

Project Phoenix accused of being a scam
Platinum Games working on two self-published games
Mutant Football League kicks off the New Year with a console launch

All this and Listener Feedback. The Question of the Week remains, “What game are you looking forward to in 2018?”

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo.com and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including PS4, Microsoft XBOX One and XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.